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The Hellstrand Group
The Hellstrand Group, officially Hellstrand-Riemar Incorporated, was the largest ever private military company. Hellstrand-Riemar was founded in 590FE by Raymond Hellstrand, initially under the name of Hellstrand Limited. Hellstrand Limited's contracts involved close protection and general security for private individuals and companies, however, as time passed Hellstrand limited became commonly under the employ of the Federal Viridian government itself, working to protect vital infrastructure and senior government officials. In 643FE Hellstrand Limited merged with Riemar Armaments (a weapons manufacturer based out of Federal City). With this, the Hellstrand Group had become the first company in the history of Viridia to threaten the very government of the continent itself; Hellstrand not only trained it's own operators, but also equipped them with its very own company licensed and produced firearms, making Hellstrand group a de facto independent military industrial complex. At Hellstrand's very zenith (just before the outbreak of the War of Populist Freedom), the corporation had 20,200 operators employed within its ranks. Federal Relations As the Hellstrand Group swelled in size, scope and capability, the Federal Government became increasingly reliant on the company, often choosing to delegate what would usually be considered law enforcement or military duties to Hellstrand. As a result, the Hellstrand Group, while certainly experiencing a financial boon, saw a concentration of profits around government contracts, leading also to Hellstrand's reliance on the Federal government. Federal Utilisation Though over a prolonged period, it became eminently clear that the Federal government was losing control; a disenfranchised working class, a stagnating economy and a political elite which seemed ever distant led to the formation of various insurgent groups. As Viridia slid further and further into chaos, the Hellstrand-Riemar corporation became the primary apparatus of covert Federal counter-terrorism. The Hellstrand group were vital for Federal control, acting as a 'gloves off' organisation willing, able and eager to engage subversive elements of the Viridian population. The company allowed the Federal government to unofficially break the rules of engagement and achieve objectives rapidly, efficiently and with a high level of secrecy. During the lead-up to the War of Populist Freedom Hellstrand Operators garnered a sinister reputation, in no small part due to the corporation's trademark 'Hellstrand Raid', which was a tactic used by small squads of operators, infamously involving the deployment of nerve agent canisters. War of Populist Freedom The Hellstrand Group firmly fell on the side of the loyalists upon the outbreak of the 'Populist Rebellion' led by the now united insurgents calling themselves Continentals. Without the necessary military hardware capable of fighting the rebels, the outgunned and outnumbered Federal government offered the Hellstrand-Riemar corporation a blank cheque until sufficient Federal forces could be raised. Though lacking the sufficient numbers (pitifully so) and heavy armour required to conduct large scale offensives, the Hellstrand Group was, at the outbreak of the war, the best trained, organised, equipped, technologically advanced and manoeuvrable fighting force on Viridia. This advantage was fully exploited by Corporation infantry formations which, at the start of the war, devastated assembling continental forces in decisive engagements with often no casualties, a deciding factor being that the Corporation's operators were the only force to be equipped with night-vision technology. During the first phase of the war the Hellstrand Group helped manage the fortification of major loyalist strongholds, as well as creating their own garrisons within large cities. The corporation's plan was to utilise the company's tried and tested strategy of shock and awe, this took the form of infantry units striking out from said loyalist strongholds with the intention of disrupting, destroying and delaying rebel progress (at least until a sufficiently prepared Federal Government force could begin the process of actually securing objectives and occupying ground). So called 'Reaving Parties' would depart loyalist held territory to reap a bloody toll on continental logistical networks. These Platoon sized units set about eradicating Continental reconnaissance units, ambushing supply trains and sabotaging airfields, garrisons and various Continental installations. With severely restricted manpower, Hellstrand-Riemar Incorporated had to carefully pick engagements that would result in decisive victory, every lost operator was a combatant that could not be replaced for the loyalists. The Federal government had severely underestimated the resolve of the Continentals, though the Federal government arguably raised a military force capable of fighting the rebellion, structural issues such as poor leadership and a mishandled logistical system led to the victory by Continental forces. Hellstrand-Riemar was dissolved after the war on charges of treason, with Justice Maddison concluding "...the use of lethal neurological agents, the unbridled brutality of its operators upon both military and civilian targets and the near comprehensive destruction of land and life deemed traitorous to the Federal cause, leaves me with no option but to brand your consortium of depravity with high treason".